Bristol-Myers Squibb is investing approximately $250 million to expand its large-scale biologics manufacturing facility in Devens, Massachusetts. The expansion will introduce biologics development and clinical-trial manufacturing capabilities to the site while adding approximately 350 employees to the Devens workforce over time.

The Devens site is home to the company’s large-scale bulk biologic manufacturing facility. Construction of the Devens site was completed in 2009. It represented the company’s largest single capital investment ($750 million) and provided Bristol-Myers Squibb with large-scale bulk biologics production capacity. In May 2012, the company received FDA approval to manufacture its arthritis drug Orencia (abatacept) at the Devens facility.

The new $250-million investment will be used to construct two new buildings on the 89-acre Devens campus: one building for process development and one for clinical manufacturing. Together, the two buildings will add approximately 200,000 ft2of laboratory and office space to the Devens site, which is now comprised of six major buildings in a 400,000- ft2complex.

Work on the expansion is expected to begin in late 2013 and be completed in 2015. In the interim, Bristol-Myers Squibb has leased 30,000 ft2 of laboratory space in nearby Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to begin moving some biologics process-development functions closer to Devens during construction. The company intends to maintain this space until construction is completed.